1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to improvements in treads for a vehicle tire. In particular, the present invention relates to improvements to discrete tread elements of tires used in off-road racing.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A tire which is subjected to severe conditions such as off-road racing, could develop chunking problems to the tread even after short usage. Such severe conditions are often encountered in desert racing. The chunking problem is typically present at the leading edge of a tread element.
A tire used for desert racing typically has a tread pattern which includes at least a plurality of circumferentially arranged discrete tread block elements. The tread block elements are relatively deep to provide sufficient surface area at its leading and trailing edges to provide sufficient traction in such environments. However, in such severe conditions, the tread of the tire not only encounters soft and loose terrain such as sand, but encounters relatively hard and solid objects such as rocks, trees or other debris.
Chunking is a phenomena which mostly occurs to tires used on high performance vehicles. Such vehicles are capable of spinning the tires relative to the ground surface that the vehicle operates on. Specifically, spinning occurs when the rotational speed of the tire is greater than the ground speed traversed. When spinning occurs, and when a tread block element impacts a solid object, the leading edge, of the tread block element as viewed in the direction of tire rotation, tears out from such impact. The chunking is mostly aesthetically unpleasing but can lead to further cracking of the tread block element if any sharp edges are created due to the chunking of the tread block element. This also creates a premature wear problem in the tire.